Wiley Larsen is a startup founder from Arizona, and he loves talking about startups as well. Recently he had a lecture at the Business incubator Novi Sad.

1. GIST MASTER CLASS
Supporting and Building
Science-Based Startups
Wiley Larsen
Program Manager
Arizona State University

2. university startup challenges
• Limited number of company successes vs. launches
• Definition- ROI, job creation, media coverage, other?
• Lack of qualified management and access to early stage capital
• Reactionary process to faculty startups
• Underutilized ASU assets applied to outside company engagement
• Missed revenue opportunities
• Fragmented venture development activities across ASU enterprise
• Less-than-precise reporting on economic development activity

3. Immuno-
Signature
Johnston/
Woodbury
Bill Colston,
CEO
$15M capital
raised; 33
employees
Neurostim-
Ultrasound
Jamie Tyler
Isy Goldwasser,
CEO
$20M capital
raised; 25
employees
Zinc-air battery
Cody Friessen
Chuck Ensign,
CEO
$125M+ capital
raised; 120
employees
anatomy of a successful IP-based startup
HealthTell Thync Fluidic

4. anatomy of student startup
David Frakes,
Faculty
Haithem
Babacker, PhD
Student + CEO
Robert Green,
Mentor
$20K Student
Entrepreneurship
Program
Endovantage
Vivek Kaparthi,
MBA Student,
CEO
lots of mentors
Raised $2M)
---- CTO
-------- CEO
$250K Arizona
Innovation Challenge,
$1M Angel Funding,
510K FDA submitted,
In Revenue, 8 FTE
NeoLight

5. Typical University Startup
idea
grant-funded
research
invention
disclosure
form a
company
license?

6. Typical University Startup - Challenges
idea
grant-funded
research
invention
disclosure
form a
company
license ?
» CEO is university tenured professor
» Research is early/ongoing
» Difficulty raising Funding
» “Business Plan” is unrealistic
» Project fizzles out – no one is working full
time on it.
» or, if it gets to revenue, it becomes a
service model with 1-5 employees
» researcher moves on to new idea

7. what its starting to look like…
» Identifying PhD students or postdocs as
founders
» Full-time faculty are advisors but not founders
(minority owners)
» Research is still ongoing but becoming more
customer focused.
» More deliberate search for Product-Market Fit
» Non-faculty founders are often more
coachable and receptive to mentoring
student led research
project
invention disclosure
student startup formed
student funding
programs leveraged
economic development
funds accessed
friends/family and
angel funding

9. what its starting to look like… challenges
» Recent graduates are young and have difficulty
raising venture funding
» Proof of concept of the solution is
accomplished but team doesn’t know how to
scale.
» Product doesn’t perform as well at scale
» Sales plateau – never gains traction outside
student led research
project
invention disclosure
student startup formed
student funding
programs leveraged
economic development
funds accessed
friends/family and
angel funding

10. Supporting Academic Startups
» Mentorship/Training
» Space
» Access to capital

11. Supporting Academic Startups
» Mentorship/Training
» Venture Development School TEST – BUILD -- SCALE
» Venture Mentors –
» Industry specific, one year assignment
» Subject Matter Experts – Legal, Marketing, Finance, etc.
» Generalists

12. Supporting Academic Startups
» Space
» Off-campus office space and Conflict of Interest
» Off-campus lab space
» contracting with university resources
“Sponsored Research”
» Light Manufacturing Space – Space for growth
» “Free Space” capped at 2 yrs

13. Supporting Academic Startups
» Space
» Perks – Other business services at a discount
» Legal
» Marketing, Media, and Print
» Product design
» Financial services – banking and accounting

14. Supporting Academic Startups
» Access to capital
» Seed grants/Local econ development
State Innovation Grants
Local Foundation Grants
Startup Pitch Competitions
$10,000 to $250,000

15. Supporting Academic Startups
» Access to capital
» Private Seed Funding – Friends & Family, Angel
$50,000 to $1,000,000

16. Supporting Academic Startups
» Access to capital
» Federal grants
$2000 to $1,500,000
Eligible for
$750,000 for
beta testing
and
commercial
deployment
(deadline
occurs 2 yrs
after Phase I
award)
NSF SBIR
Phase II
Eligible for
$225,000 for
proof-of-
concept and
prototyping
(next
deadline:
June 2017)
NSF SBIR
Phase I
Eligible for
$50,000 in
funding for
customer
discovery
(next
deadline:
3/15/17)
NSF I-Corps
$2000 in
funding to
begin
customer
discovery
(next
deadline
1/13/17)
ASU "TEST"

17. Supporting Academic Startups
» Access to capital –
Total Value – “Seed”
$10,000 to $2,500,000
Grants & Convertible Notes

18. Supporting Academic Startups
» Access to capital
» Venture Funding ?
YES – If management is in
place
David Frakes,
Faculty
Haithem
Babacker, PhD
Student + C0O
Robert Green,
CEO
$20K Student
Entrepreneurship
Program
$250K Arizona
Innovation Challenge,
$1M Angel Funding,
510K FDA submitted,
In Revenue, 8 FTE
David Frakes
Next idea?
New PhD
Student?

19. don’t know where to start?
10% - First contact
25% - First meeting with TTO
50% - Wants to do startup
60% - LLC formed
70% - First Draft License Agreement
80% - Near agreement
90% - Final draft - ready to sign
100% - License signed